-
"Connectivism is the integration of principles explored by chaos, network, and complexity and self-organization theories (Siemens, 2005)." This was the first internet-native learning theory. It helped people understand that reworking new technology into a realm people could use for education was an option, versus trying to force technology into outdated, already existing practices (Weller, 2018). -
Personal Learning Environments (PLEs) "is a concept in education that refers to the learning space created by an individual to support their personal and professional growth (Teachfloor)." This includes both online tools and resources. -
MOOCs, or massive open online courses, are free online courses that anyone can enroll in for educational experiences such as learning new skills or career development (MOOC.org). -
Free digital versions of textbooks that are openly liscensed to be freely used and shared (Weller, 2018). -
This allowed educators to have feedback on student engagement, such as repeatedly going back to resources, in order to provide data on what is effective (Weller, 2018). -
Verifiable badges that are linked to achievement and evidence. This created a recognizable and scalable way to quantify online achievements (Weller, 2018). -
Powerful computation technology brought back the focus on AI from the 1980s when it originally was gaining traction. AI in education also raised ethical concerns over the future of education and the importance of people-driven teaching (Weller, 2018). -
Use of VR in education, especially in subjects such as Physics, Medical, Astronomy, and Biology became increasingly popular. It can be used for lab experiments as well as digital storytelling and educational games (Shekhawat, 2021). -
The increasing popularity of STEAM courses in schools leads to the increase of technology to go along with them. Makerspaces, utilizing technology like 3D printers, became more widespread (Cortez, 2018). -
Although Smartboard technology has been around for decades, the falling price and increasing accessibility of them have made them extremely widespread in classrooms. They enhance learning for a variety of learner types, such as tactile, visual, and auditory (Jarman, 2021). -
With COVID-19 and the rapidly forced increase in distance learning, eLearning became on the rise. Platforms such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams had to rise to the occasion of virtual classrooms, as well as video-assisted learning (Bui, 2025).